the white house says keeping the financial industry afloat was part of rescuing the overall economy. >> the president does not believe anything we do in washington is worthwhile if it doesn't have as part of the purpose strengthening our economy. providing more security for our middle class. >> the aides said it would have been worse without the president's program including legislation aimed to prevent future bail-out of institutions deemed too big to fail. not all agree how effective it will be. >> peter moresi believes the big investment houses are thriving but the average investor is not. >> if they buy a mutual fund they have a high probability of not keeping up with the market. if they buy the s&p index which is the market, it doesn't make progress. >> the white house says it's not fault of the recovery plan. the stimulus bill contain more tax cuts and less spending than the president's advisors wanted. jay carney says the compromise was the best they could get. >> the idea that we would have somehow garnered more support in congress for something different, is a misreading of